


Neck Romancer

by andthatisterrible



Series: Shoot Vampire AU [8]
Category: Person of Interest (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, F/F, PWP, Vampires, and also vampire!root later on, human!root/vampire!shaw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-27
Updated: 2020-09-27
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:14:33
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 15,399
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26676496
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/andthatisterrible/pseuds/andthatisterrible
Summary: Root has decided it's finally time for Shaw to turn her into a vampire. PWP with some cute stuff.
Relationships: Root/Sameen Shaw
Series: Shoot Vampire AU [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1562674
Comments: 28
Kudos: 126





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> According to the timestamp, I've been working on this since April. This is the last vampire au fic I plan to write. Another one could happen set before or after this one if I ever get an idea, but for now I'm going to call it completed.
> 
> content for both chapters includes: rough sex, vampire biting stuff, strap-ons, butt stuff, knife play, light bondage

"How does it work?"

Shaw paused to look up from the sink at where Root was perched on the high edge of the jacuzzi tub in the middle of the bathroom.

"Uh, you charge it with a usb cable and then press the button to turn it on?"

"Not the vibrator, sweetie. Becoming a vampire."

"Oh." Shaw turned the water off and set aside the toy she'd been cleaning. "It depends." She dried her hands and turned around to face Root. "There's the correct way to do it which takes about a week, and then there's the fast, emergency way which takes maybe an hour or two but has a low survival rate."

Root's bare heels kicked slowly against the side of the tub, making dull thudding noises. "Which way did you go?"

"Fast."

Root must have picked up on the fact she had no interest in going into details from her tone because she just nodded and didn't press the subject further. "How does the correct method go?" She held a hand out to Shaw and Shaw approached her warily. She had the distinct feeling she was about to get suckered into carrying Root somewhere again.

"Basically the vampire feeds regularly from the person they're turning over the course of several days. Not enough to kill them, but enough to weaken them a lot."

Root wrapped her legs around Shaw the second she was within reach. "Sounds fun."

Shaw let her hands rest on the tub on either side of Root. "It's not fun. From all accounts, the person feels like shit most of the time. Weak and groggy."

"But with lots of sucking and biting."

Shaw rolled her eyes. Root had a very one-track mind about some things. "It's not fun, okay?"

Root's face was full of mock seriousness. "No fun allowed. Understood. So after all the not-fun biting and sucking, what next?" Her fingers toyed with the bottom of Shaw's shirt.

"After a couple days, once the human is suitably drained enough, they have to drink some of the vampire's blood. Which also isn't fun." Her eyes narrowed slightly when she felt Root tug at her belt buckle. If they were having the conversation for the reason she thought they were then Root should really be paying attention.

"And that's all there is to it? No sleeping in a coffin together in a desecrated graveyard?"

Shaw's belt came undone with a metal jingle, but Shaw grabbed Root's hands, lightning fast before she could unbutton her pants.

"No graveyards, and definitely no coffins," Shaw said firmly. "You've gotta stop reading those shitty books." She released Root's hands, but hauled her up off the edge of the tub before she could try again and carried her out of the bathroom, almost slamming her into the door frame by accident. Root was too tall for her own good.

"Is that it then?" Root asked when Shaw dropped her on the edge of the bed with a bounce. "Blood sharing and then poof you're a vampire?"

"Not quite." Shaw opened the drawer on the nightstand and held back a smirk at the small anticipatory intake of breath that got from Root. "Sit up with your back against the headboard."

When she had located two pairs of handcuffs from the drawer, she turned to find Root sitting back against the headrest, her shirt already gone. Someone was eager. It was a good thing she'd left her pants on though.

Shaw climbed onto the bed and knelt over Root to cuff first one of her wrists and then the other up next to her on the headboard. She tugged on the cuffs once and backed off, satisfied, to sit cross-legged at the foot of the bed.

"There's a little more to it than the whole blood drinking part," Shaw said, ignoring the outraged look that swept over Root's face when she realized this wasn't going the way she'd expected. "Some people have a theory that vampirism is like a virus that we can pass to people at will, and I guess the concept might not be totally off base, but it's not an actual virus."

Root tugged against the cuffs a few times, face twisted with frustration, and then leaned back against the headboard, sulking but attentive. "What is it then?"

"Don't know, but it's something a vampire has to deliberately pass on to a human for it to work."

"Pass on how?"

"Through biting."

Root's face lit up. "So like the sexy vampire aphrodisiac thing?"

"Yeah, but not sexy at all." She was starting to think that part of the whole thing was bouncing off of Root. "And after all of that, you die."

That finally seemed to get Root's full attention. The smile left her face, but she didn't look scared so much as curious. "How does that part work?"

Differently for Root than it had for her hopefully, but Shaw didn't say that. "If everything goes correctly you fall asleep--or pass out, I guess--and wake up as a vampire."

"What's that like?"

Shaw tried to recall. "Confusing. Painful. Irritating. Loud." Getting used to her new hearing capabilities had been the worst. She tried to gauge Root's reaction but neither her breathing nor her heart rate seemed to have changed. She was a little too calm about the whole thing. "It takes a while to get used to and the best bet is to stay inside somewhere quiet and dark until you sort yourself out."

Root bit her lip. "So...no wild, animalistic sex then?"

"Uh, no. I don't think that's part of it."

Root looked disappointed.

Shaw shook her head in disgust. "You really need to stop reading those shitty books." Though wild, animalistic sex didn't necessarily sound bad. "You're just going to be miserable for a while and then things will even out."

"As simple as that?"

"It only sounds simple. Trust me, it isn't."

"Have you turned anyone before?"

"No, but I've seen it done. Both ways actually."

Root nodded thoughtfully.

"Are you…" Shaw felt odd bringing it up even if it had been Root who'd started the conversation. "You said a while back you wanted it--to be a vampire. Are you still thinking that?"

"Obviously." Root pulled at one of her cuffs again. "I was thinking in a week or two if that works, so in the meantime--" She rattled the cuffs meaningfully. "--I would very much like to get the full benefits of being a human who's fucking a vampire."

She talked about it so casually, like they were planning a trip and not her dying and rising again to become undead for all eternity. "This is permanent, you know, and once we start you can't back out. After the process starts your only choices are to finish it or die."

Root shrugged. "I'm not planning on changing my mind." She must have seen something in Shaw's face because she smiled at her in fond exasperation. "I did all the soul searching and deliberation months ago, sweetie. I know what I want."

Shaw relaxed a little. Root and her stupid ability to say the right thing when she needed her to. It was aggravating how effective it was.

"And besides, you'll be there the whole time, right? I can't think of anyone else I'd trust with my life. Or death, I suppose."

Shaw stared fixedly at the blanket on the bed. "Yeah, I'll be there."

"See? Nothing for me to worry about then." She poked at Shaw with her toes. "Now either untie me or take my pants off."

* * *

They settled on a date for two weeks later and Root even put a drawing of fangs with blood dripping from them on her bat of the month wall calendar that Shaw hated with every cell in her body. The two weeks were both so they could get all the human/vampire fucking out of their systems and so Shaw was sure Root had some extra time to think about it just in case.

Two weeks felt...awfully soon. Shaw had been willing to turn her ages ago, but now that it was almost on top of them it felt like a huge, looming presence crouched ominously in the near future.

"Will we still be able to do this part?" Root asked three days into their two weeks as Shaw fed from her neck. It was only a small feeding this time, a pick-me-up for Shaw to go with the blood bags.

Shaw pulled back and licked the blood off her teeth. "Yeah, but it won't work the same way." She hadn't gone too much into some of the differences after the change outside the most important ones yet, but maybe it was time. "I'll explain more after this."

She'd miss this, she realized as Root's blood flooded into her mouth. Feeding had never been anything more than survival for her until Root had come along and made it all sexy and important somehow. A thing they shared. It wouldn't be impossible after Root was a vampire, but she worried that it wouldn't be the same either.

She was extremely aware that Root was getting turned on as she drank from her--which she always seemed to now--but Root slipping her own hand down between her legs to touch herself was a new addition. The small moan Root let out as she touched herself vibrated through her throat where Shaw's mouth was pressed against her. Rude of her to start without Shaw, but Shaw shoved a hand up Root's shirt to squeeze her breast in encouragement.

She released Root's neck before she'd finished feeding because she could tell Root was getting close and there was no way Shaw was letting her get herself off yet. She grasped Root's wrist lightly and tugged until Root slid her fingers out of herself and let Shaw raise her hand up and twist it back over her shoulder. Shaw sucked Root's sticky fingers into her mouth, the taste of her arousal mixing with the taste of her blood.

"Will I be able to feed on you after?" Root asked.

Shaw released her fingers. "You really wanna talk about this right now?" The way Root's butt was pressing back into her as she rolled her hips was...distracting. And inspiring.

"You're good at multitasking." Root's hand stroked the outside of her leg. "Think of it as spicing up a dull but necessary conversation."

"Fine." Shaw tapped her on the side. "Let me up then." She had some ideas about Root's butt.

"No, like this once, then we can do whatever it is you just thought up." She snagged Shaw's hand and Shaw let her guide it between her legs.

Root's hips bucked up to meet the thrusts of her fingers and her head fell back on Shaw's shoulder as she came, only seconds after Shaw had started. Would she still get this into the biting and feeding stuff after she was a vampire? How much was actually going to change?

"Vampires can feed on each other," Shaw explained while Root was still too relaxed to cause more trouble. "It only works if the one getting fed on has fed recently. It's like recycled blood or something."

"Does it feel the same as feeding on a human?"

"I haven't tried it, so I'm not sure. It's mostly only done right after a new vampire gets turned: the vampire who turned them gets blood from somewhere and the new vampire feeds on them. That way they don't have to deal with the sensory overload from going outside right away." And also made it less likely the new vampire would accidentally kill someone.

"Like a baby bird," Root mused. "This means the first thing I'll get to do as a vampire is bite you?"

"I guess it does."

"That's something to look forward to then." She squirmed around to sit up. "Now let's get to whatever it is you've been thinking up that's making you twitch like that."

"I'm not twitching."

Root half-turned and patted her on the cheek. "Whatever you say, sweetie."

One of the things Shaw had enjoyed about sleeping with Root right from the beginning was how they managed to balance out their sex plans with improvisation that worked out well for both of them. Like tonight, for example, where they'd started out with Root lying on her stomach while Shaw expertly pumped first one and then two fingers in and out of her ass while Root had panted and writhed and gotten both of them even more worked up, but then, when Shaw had paused to get the strap-on set up, Root had rolled over onto her back.

"Let's try it this way."

Shaw climbed back on the bed. "Works for me."

They'd never tried a face to face position before while one of them fucked the other in the ass, and Shaw was a little apprehensive about adding potential eye contact into something that could already be intense. Root was good at not making her uncomfortable, but not all her previous partners had been and so the tiny edge of worry remained.

There definitely was something rawer about Root's expression when Shaw slowly edged the tip of the dildo into her from this angle. She spread Root's legs further apart and pushed one up to make room for herself as she sank all the way into her. In this position she didn't get to appreciate the very pleasing sight of herself thrusting into Root's ass quite the same way, but she did get to see Root's expressions clearly and watch the way her whole body reacted to the penetration from a new angle and okay, that was hot too.

Maybe Root did look at her a little more intensely, but the way her hands twisted in the sheets and the guttural moans she let out each time Shaw rocked her hips into her were more than enough to make up for any weirdness. And yeah, fine, having Root spread open beneath her like this and willing to let Shaw see her so exposed was also kind of a turn on. Root had once again come up with a super sexy idea and would no doubt gloat about it later, but now was not the time to think about future annoyances. Now was the time to follow the guidance of Root's hands on her hips and reposition slightly. Root's hands clutched at her tighter and her head pressed back into the sheets, neck bared to the ceiling and fuck Shaw wanted to bite her, but instead she slid her hand between them so she could rub Root's clit. Root's eyes clenched shut and her whole body tensed and shook like a wave rippling through her.

As she started to relax, Shaw sped up, wanting so badly to come while they were still connected like this. She leaned forwards to brace herself with one hand on the bed as her hips kept pumping up against Root's ass, the strap-on still deep inside Root. She remembered the first time she'd fucked Root, the first time she'd bitten her, and she bent her head down to sink her fangs into the curve of Root's breast. It was a shallow bite, but it still heightened the feeling of being inside Root and a few more erratic thrusts brought her to her own climax.

She rested her head on Root's chest as she rode it out, the slight twitches of Root's hips against her only prolonging the sensations. The small noise of discomfort from Root pulled her back to herself and she sat up quickly. She pulled out of Root slowly, watching her face as she did and the open and raw look there was certainly something she didn't know how to deal with, but couldn't claim to not enjoy it either.

The strap-on got tossed aside and Root softened and relaxed into the sheets. Shaw lay down next to her on her side and let her recover in her own time. Intense sex like that was a treat for her, but often left Root kind of clingy and drained, which Root definitely liked, but there was some recovery time there, and the inevitable cuddling that she was sticking around for and had come to even enjoy in some ways.

Root rolled over towards her and Shaw lifted her arm so Root could fit herself up against her. It was the skin to skin contact she seemed to be after at times like this rather than any awkward endearments or caresses and having Root's soft and sweaty body pressing into her was definitely not a bad thing.

"That was quite something," Root said into her shoulder after a few minutes. "I didn't expect it to be quite that intense."

"You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just need a few minutes." She laughed a little shakily. "God, Shaw, sometimes I think I could come just from the way you look at me."

"How do I look at you?" Shaw asked, a little confused but also used to how Root sometimes got a bit melodramatic when she was like this.

"Mmm, like you want to eat me."

Shaw chuckled. "Maybe a little later."

"I can't wait until I can bite you like that," Root murmured. "Both of us with our fangs in each other. Can you imagine?"

Shaw'd had sex with other vampires before so she could definitely imagine it, but she thought maybe that wouldn't be the right thing to point out right now so she stuck with, "Sounds like fun to me."

"Definitely." Root's voice was soft but excited. "We're going to have so much fun together."

* * *

"Don't you have anywhere you want to go?" Shaw asked after breakfast one day.

'Breakfast' had been served at five pm and was still untouched on the table. Root had decided that while it was very sweet of Shaw to try and cook her favorites for her, her real favorite thing to eat was something else entirely. It hadn't taken much more than an unsubtle suggestion to get Shaw to sit on the edge of the table so Root could pull her chair up between her legs and slowly eat her out while the French toast turned cold. Shaw may have nearly kicked a hole in the side of the chair when she came, but after, she relaxed back on the table and seemed uninclined to move. Root climbed up as well and sat cross-legged next to her to enjoy the blissful look on her face from up close. And then Shaw's eyes had regained focus and she'd started asking questions.

"Where would I want to go?" Root asked instead of answering the question.

"I dunno, somewhere you want to see in full daylight without being bundled up in a million layers. The beach maybe."

"I don't like the beach, and I've always been a night owl by preference."

"Hmm." Shaw looked over towards all the abandoned food. "What about people?"

"What about them?" Was she going to have to go down on Shaw again to cut off all the well-meaning-but-unnecessary questions?

"I thought maybe you'd have people out there somewhere you might want to see before this. Friends or family or whatever. I mean you could still see them after, but it's different."

Neither of them had ever spoken extensively about their pasts and Root had been grateful not to have to answer questions like this before. She did get why Shaw was asking though.

"Nothing like that, no." Not since she'd been a kid. "You're worrying too much, Shaw. I'm perfectly capable of figuring out how to spend my last weeks as a human and I can't think of any better way than to spend them right here letting you cater to my every whim."

"Fat chance," Shaw said as if she hadn't let Root cuddle her all day and then made breakfast for her. "I'm just saying, you should think about if there's anything specific you want to do."

"Well, mostly I want to do y--"

" _Besides_ me."

Root was about to tell her again to stop worrying, but she caught herself. Time for a different approach. "What do you miss the most from being human?"

"Food," Shaw said without hesitation.

"Yes, I noticed that, but not quite what I meant."

"Oh." Shaw finally looked back at her. "Getting tied up effectively. Not quite the same when I can accidentally rip the cuffs to pieces with no effort. And having marks not heal right away. Feeling sore the next day. That sort of stuff."

"Those all sound like things I definitely should do now then." Though she already had the feeling sore part taken care of.

"I'm not going to argue with that," Shaw said, "but if you do think of anything else…."

Root bopped Shaw on the nose and then smoothed away the scowl on her face with one finger. "You're cute when you worry." She unfolded her legs and slid to the floor. "Now, let's talk about how you're going to tie me up."

* * *

"Did you get to choose which animals you could turn into?" Root asked.

Shaw groaned and dropped the bench press bar back onto the rack. "You always pick the worst times for this stuff."

The truth was that Root had mostly come downstairs to watch Shaw lift, but the question had been kicking around in her mind for the last day and she hadn't been able to keep herself from asking.

"It's complicated," Shaw said as she sat up on the bench. "You can try to turn into whatever you want, but it won't work in most cases. Some stuff you get lucky on, and sometimes you just change forms without meaning to when you're in an extreme situation." Her face darkened. "Like if you fell overboard into the ocean and some vampire instinct kicked in and you changed into some dumbass sea animal you'd never have voluntarily chosen."

There was a long silence and then Shaw added, "Not that that's a thing that happened."

"So, you can have opinions that might make certain animals more likely, but nothing certain?" Root asked as she made a careful mental note to find a way to drop Shaw in a lake at some point in the future to see what she turned into.

"Yeah, basically. Why? You have something in mind?"

"Oh, a few ideas maybe." All the obvious ones--like wolves and panthers--Shaw had covered, and she could see how those could be fun and useful, but she wanted something unique. Something _fun_.

Shaw must have seen something in her expression because she looked gloomily resigned. "If you turn into a giraffe, I'm kicking you out."

* * *

Shaw had expected Root to have some kind of elaborate plan for how she wanted Shaw to turn her--like maybe going somewhere unnecessarily dramatic like Versailles or the Large Hadron Collider--but as the final days ticked by it became clear she didn't have anything fancier in mind than staying in Shaw's castle. (Good thing, too, since it'd be a pain to travel with her while she was feeling the effects of slowly having her life drained away). Root wanted to be here, with her, and that was it.

She let Root sleep in on the big day (big night really), partly because they'd gone at it so much the day before that Root was going to be walking funny and partly because it would be one of the last times Root could really rest soundly. So Shaw left her in bed and snuck down to her little reading room by the library. She was stretched out across the couch there (which was an actual antique chaise longue that Root had acquired from somewhere for 'the aesthetic' and that Shaw enjoyed calling a couch just to see her sulk) when Root finally came downstairs to find her.

She looked up when she heard Root pause at the door and found her leaning against the door frame watching her. Root's hair was still messy and she was wearing a black cotton t-shirt that Shaw thought might have been hers and a pair of boxers that definitely were. She looked soft from sleep still and for once the sight of the bite marks on her skin (on her neck peeking out from under her hair and on both arms) didn't instantly turn Shaw on. She found herself desperately wanting to do something, but completely unsure what the something was. Not sex, though, and not feeding on her.

"What're you reading?" Root asked.

"Nothing worth mentioning." Shaw set the book aside. "How're you feeling?"

Root's smile said she was remembering everything they'd done the night before. "Sore, but in a good way."

She pushed off the door frame and crossed the room to stand in front of the couch. Shaw reached out to wrap a hand around the outside of Root's thigh where it was closest to her. It still sometimes surprised her that she could touch Root so casually like this without feeling that twinge of discomfort she always had in the past.

"Come here." She tugged on Root's leg until Root took the hint and joined her on the couch, straddling her so she was sitting in her lap. Shaw propped herself up a little more on the arm of the couch and rested her hands on Root's hips.

"Anything you had in mind for today?" she asked. Her hands crept under the bottom of Root's shirt, enjoying the direct contact with her warm skin.

Root almost purred at her touch. "You mean other than…?"

"Yeah, other than that."

"Not really, no." Root played with the collar of Shaw's shirt. She must have brushed her hair back over one shoulder when she'd sat down because Shaw had a clear view of her neck now all stamped with bite marks. "Did you?"

"Not really, no," Shaw echoed. Her hands maybe wandered a bit and dipped down into Root's boxers to cup her ass. "But I'm always up for improvising."

She wasn't sure which one of them leaned in first, but it didn't really matter. Root's mouth was demanding against hers and Root's hands clung to her shoulders as they moved against each other. It was slow, almost lazy, making out, the type neither of them were usually in the mood for. Shaw sucked bruises over the healing bite marks on Root's neck and squeezed her ass, and Root rolled her hips into Shaw and palmed her breasts through her shirt.

When they finally paused for breath, Root's face was flushed red and her lips were swollen from kissing. Shaw stared up at her hungrily. They'd planned to not have sex again today, and that plan seemed to have held up for about ten minutes. Clearly it was all Root's fault.

Since sex seemed like it was inevitable now, Shaw figured they might as well get on with it and moved her hand around to the front so she could touch Root. She'd been able to smell how aroused Root was, but she was still impressed with how wet she was. Root smiled down at her all sleepy and turned on and leaned forwards against her. She tucked her head into the crook of Shaw's neck so her small, soft noises echoed right into Shaw's ear.

It was an almost-sweet type of sex that Shaw wouldn't have been into if it had been with anyone but Root, but she'd given up on second guessing herself where Root was involved. She kept her movements slow and even inside Root, stroking and curling more than thrusting, and she rested her other hand in Root's hair. It was a slower build this way, and Root's skin was sticky against hers by the time she shuddered all over and clutched at Shaw.

Shaw stroked Root's hair as she waited for her to stop clenching around her fingers. Normally she might have discouraged the way Root was clinging to her now, but today it was fine. Today it felt reassuring, probably for both of them.

"That was nice," Root said into her neck.

"Are you going to fall back asleep here?" Shaw asked. She ran her hands up Root's warm back, over the ridges of her spine. "Because if you are, I want my book first."

"Tempting, but no." Root sat up enough to look at her. "It's time to do this." There was no uncertainty in her eyes, no hesitation.

Shaw nodded. "Yeah, I think it is."

* * *

There was no logical reason for Root to feel nervous, and yet she found herself on edge, strung tight with the type of adrenaline she usually only got before a fight. Shaw must have noticed, but she didn't comment on it, for which Root was immensely grateful.

Originally she'd imagined that they'd be up in Shaw's bed for this, like they usually were when Shaw fed on her, but there was something intimate and safe about Shaw's little reading room even without a fire lit in the hearth. Claiming immortality seemed like the sort of thing to be done in a grand ceremony or ritual, but while the idea of that was appealing in theory, Root didn't think she'd actually have wanted that now at this moment.

She sat cradled between Shaw's legs, her back resting against Shaw's chest, just the way they sat when Shaw fed on her. Shaw pulled the hair back off her neck and rubbed her thumb over one of the many healing bite marks there already.

"You ready?"

"Absolutely," she said with more confidence than she felt.

"I'm going to feed a little and then...I don't remember what it felt like for me so well, maybe kind of like ice in my veins."

"Well it won't be the first time I've been called cold-blooded."

She expected Shaw to ask her yet again if she was sure, but Shaw just chuckled against her neck.

It all felt very familiar at first: Shaw's fangs pierced her neck in two sharp points of pain and then vanished before Shaw's mouth latched on and sucked. It had always been an intimate experience for her--even though from what Shaw had told her there was very little intimate about feeding usually--and this time was no different. She let herself sink into the feeling of Shaw's mouth on her skin and Shaw's arm wrapped firmly around her waist. Everything felt familiar right up until Shaw pulled back and bit into her again, this time much harder and deeper than she usually did. Root whimpered in protest and instinctively tried to pull away, but Shaw's arm held her locked tightly in place.

And then a new sensation started. Shaw had said it felt like ice in her veins, but that didn't do it justice. The cold that spread out through her body from the bite mark was so intense it overwhelmed any rational thought she had. Her fingers and toes ached with the cold and shivers wracked her whole body. She didn't even notice when Shaw stopped biting her, not until after the worst of the cold had subsided and left her curled up against Shaw rubbing her own arms in an attempt to return feeling to them. Shaw's hands joined hers, rubbing warmth back into her body.

"Your hands are warm," she said in wonder. Shaw's body had never been ice cold the way some stories had vampires being, but she'd always been cool to the touch. Now her skin felt almost hot against Root's.

"I'm going to take you back upstairs now," Shaw said. "You're going to want to sleep a lot from now on." Shaw's habitual flat tone sounded forced now, like she was making an effort to sound as blasé as possible.

"Am I supposed to be this tired?" It was like she was slowly sinking down into the ground.

"Yeah, that's normal. You'll have ups and downs the next few days, but you're going to feel weak until this is done."

"Okay." Saying anything more felt like too much effort. She shut her eyes and curled up against Shaw. Maybe she could just sleep right here until the whole thing was over.

But Shaw had other plans, because Root found herself scooped up and carried through the suddenly freezing castle all the way up to Shaw's room.

"Remember the first night I was here?" she asked as Shaw tucked her in under the covers. "I was cold then, too. You lit a fire."

"Did you want me to light a fire now?"

Root shook her head, hair rustling against the pillow. There were more blankets on top of her than there usually were and she still felt cold. "No, I'm fine. I'll just take a nap. You can go back to reading now."

She felt Shaw's hand brush her hair back off her face, and one warm finger ran over the fresh bite mark on her neck. And then the bed shifted and there was a brief draft of cold air before she felt Shaw crawl in behind her. Shaw wrapped herself around Root's back and pulled her firmly back into the curve of her body. The strange new heat of her body soaked into Root and eased the ache of the cold. Shaw's body had always felt good up against hers, but there was some extra feeling of rightness now that made her wonder if there wasn't something to those stories about new vampires sleeping with the vampire who turned them as part of the process after all.

"It wasn't a very good book anyway," Shaw said by her ear. "Just sleep."

Root fell into an uneasy sleep, full of dreams of drowning in icy, black water, but even in her dreams she could still feel Shaw, warm and solid against her back.

* * *

Shaw had thought she'd been prepared for how the next few days would go, but she found she'd greatly underestimated how much she'd be bothered by Root's state. She didn't generally get upset or worried, at least not the way she was supposed to, but seeing Root all sad and miserable was like having a stone stuck in her shoe. It didn't stop her from going about her day, but there was the constant nagging sensation that she needed to fix the problem. Root's well-being during this process was her responsibility, and, even though she knew this was how it had to happen, she couldn't help but feel like she was fucking up somehow.

Root spent all her time curled up in bed, like the time she'd had the flu. She had little to no appetite and even had to be gently bullied into drinking enough water. Anytime Shaw made her sit up, she stared up at her with the saddest eyes ever, lower lip jutting out. It reminded Shaw of Bear when he was begging for food and was equally effective, except there wasn't a thing Shaw could do to make Root feel better yet.

The worst part of it was the feeding. She'd known it would probably be unpleasant for both of them, but what no one had ever told her was that the whole process would greatly increase her own desire to feed from Root. Maybe it was some kind of urge that had evolved to help vampires correctly turn people, but at least once a day, the desire to drink from Root became so urgent that her whole body vibrated with the need.

Root definitely didn't feel any corresponding desire to be fed on, but suffered the whole thing quietly, too stubborn even now to complain.

"How many days has it been?" she asked as Shaw brushed the hair off her neck in search of a fresh place to bite.

"Two days." Shaw could smell her blood even though she hadn't bitten her yet.

"And how many more are left?"

They were curled up in bed the way they had been almost the whole time since they'd started, Root tucked into the curve of Shaw's body. She could feel how slow Root's heartbeat had gotten, how shallow her breathing was.

"One or two," she said apologetically. "I need to take a little more now, okay?"

"Of course." Root tilted her head to expose more of her neck.

It was a little disturbing how _good_ it felt to feed on Root now, how right. She felt like there was some hot, bright connection between them that only pulled tighter every time she sank her fangs into her. Root's blood even tasted better now, the first real difference in taste she'd experienced since she'd been turned herself. It was too bad that the effect probably wouldn't last after Root was fully turned.

But even with all that, she made sure that she was as gentle as it was possible for her to be. Offering comfort didn't come naturally to her, so she followed Root's lead on that. If Root was shivering, she pulled her in closer and got Bear to join them on the bed as well. If Root wanted to play with Shaw's hair or hold her hand, she let her without complaint. When it came to feeding on her she tried to balance it out between drinking slowly enough that it wouldn't cause discomfort, but not drawing it out too long either.

"Are you up for trying something?" Shaw asked when she finished feeding.

"Always," Root said, though she sounded half asleep.

"I'll be right back."

The time she'd had the poisoned blood a while back had been the closest she'd come to feeling sick in forever, and most of what she remembered about it was feeling gross all the time. Other than blood, the first thing she'd wanted had been a shower, but Root had suggested something even better.

It took a few minutes to fill the large jacuzzi tub in her bathroom with steaming hot water, and she had to dart back and forth between the bedroom and the bathroom since Root got agitated whenever she left for long. When the tub was full, she pulled a pathetically protesting Root out of bed and carried her into the bathroom. Taking her clothes off in what probably felt to Root like the Arctic seemed cruel, so Shaw just climbed into the tub holding her, both of them still in the clothes they'd been sleeping in.

It took a few minutes for Root to uncurl herself a little, but she eventually managed to sit up, looking far more awake and alert than she had in days.

"I know you told me this wouldn't be fun," she said, "but I didn't really think it would be as bad as this." Her skin was so pale even in the scorching water.

"I told you it would suck."

"You're the only one who seems to be sucking, sweetie."

It was the closest thing to a joke Root had made in days and it filled Shaw with immense relief. Root was still Root. Things would be okay again eventually.

"You're so warm now," Root said as she leaned back against Shaw.

"You're just cold is all. I haven't changed."

"Will you still feel this warm to me after?"

"I think I'll just feel like I'm a normal temperature to you."

"Well, don't worry, I'll still know you're hot."

Shaw rolled her eyes but without any real annoyance. She couldn't feel exasperated when Root was this sad and pathetic no matter how bad her lines were. She held Root in the quiet heat of the tub until Root fell back asleep and then she carried her back to bed.

Taking care of Root had been a full time job these last few days, one she felt woefully inadequate at. All she could do was keep going forward with the process and try to give Root what she needed. And what she mostly seemed to need was Shaw. Whenever Root was feeling extra bad, all Shaw had to do was let Root curl up on her and Root's whole body would relax and she'd grow peaceful. Shaw wasn't sure whether it had to do with the whole vampire process or whether it was just Root, but it did make her feel a little less useless.

On the fourth night, she knew it was time. She couldn't have said how she knew, but looking at Root made her absolutely certain.

"After I finish this time, you're going to drink some of my blood," she told Root.

"Oh." Root was sitting leaned back against her this time so Shaw couldn't see her expression, but she heard the understanding in her voice.

"And then I'll die?" Root asked quietly.

"And then you'll turn into a vampire."

"Can't wait."

She didn't take much blood this time; some instinct told her when to stop. Root's breathing was so shallow now and the only strength left in her seemed to be going into clutching Shaw's hand in her own.

Shaw pulled back from her neck and raised her own wrist up to her lips. She sank her fangs in deep--since a shallow wound would heal too fast--and sucked just enough to get the blood flowing. Then she pressed her bleeding wrist against Root's mouth.

"Come on, Root, you've been fantasizing about this for months."

Root murmured something against her skin that might have been about eating her or something equally suggestive, and then clumsily closed her mouth over the bleeding wounds on Shaw's wrist. There was no special feeling from Root feeding on her, nothing more than the wetness of Root's mouth on her skin, but Root's hand clenched around hers with a strength she hadn't shown in days.

And then Root's grasp on her loosened and she slumped against Shaw. Her heart was still beating and she was still breathing steadily, if slowly, but her limbs had gone completely limp. Shaw wiped a stray smear of blood off her mouth and then carefully lowered her back down onto the bed next to her. Root was completely unconscious from the looks of things, and unlikely to wake up again until after she'd turned. Time to move on to the next part of the plan.

She'd spent some time getting a room ready during the last two weeks. The cell in the basement-dungeon had been set up for fun role-playing purposes originally, but the original structure of it was from back when the castle had actually had dungeon cells so the walls were thick and strong. She'd reinforced them with padding to help soundproof the place and hung up blackout curtains over the door so not even a shred of light could get in from outside. She'd done the best she could to make the place seem like not a cell, though there wasn't much room to work with. But she had added a small bed, and one of Root's bean bag chairs, and even Root's dumbass bat of the month calendar to make the walls not completely bare.

That was where she took Root after that last feeding. She tucked her into the small bed and then settled herself on the bean bag chair to wait.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is [an amazing piece of art](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16965201/chapters/58992679) that was inspired by this series. Since the exact scenario depicted hadn't happened yet it seemed only natural to write it in. So that's later in this chapter.

Root sat up and slammed her hands over her left ear, that action alone causing her eardrum to reverberate with agony. She rocked back and forth in the dark, each tiny motion only making the painful noise worse, but in too much pain not to move.

Hands clamped down over her own and pried her fingers away. She fought back as the painful noise level rose again, but her hands were pinned. Something settled on top of her head and...the unbearably loud noises retreated some. She relaxed and whoever had grabbed her hands released them. She reached up to investigate and found a pair of heavy earphones on her head, the kind that blocked out all outside noises no doubt, though she could still hear some things faintly in her one working ear.

With the painful level of noise diminished, she risked opening her eyes just a crack. The room she was in must have been extremely dark, but she could still see some things faintly. Like Shaw's worried face from where she sat next to her on the bed. She almost said something to Shaw, but Shaw pressed a finger to her lips and Root took her point. If faint noises from another room were painful, then even a whisper in here would be a cacophony.

Another sense kicked in and she became keenly aware of the fact Shaw had recently had a blood bag. She could smell the blood in Shaw's mouth and perhaps even in her veins. It felt like her entire existence narrowed down to that scent.

Shaw must have realized (or remembered) her sudden need, because she held her arm out to Root, wrist hovering near her mouth. Some part of Root was dying to just climb on Shaw and finally get to bite her in the neck, but the offered wrist was too tempting. She grabbed Shaw's arm with both hands and sank her teeth into the soft skin. She only had a second to relish the feeling of her new fangs breaking the skin before there was blood in her mouth and the taste chased away all rational thoughts.

She lost all awareness of time and her surroundings as she drank, and it wasn't until Shaw forcibly separated her from her wrist that she regained coherent thought. Shaw caught her eye and raised an eyebrow while mouthing 'okay?'.

Root finally took stock of herself. Other than the hearing problem, she felt good--very good--but good in a different way than she'd ever felt before. And she had exciting new fangs which she nicked her tongue on while investigating, but who cared about a little thing like that when she had actual _fangs_.

She felt _strong_ , and fast. Her hand flashed out towards Shaw, lightning-fast, but somehow Shaw saw it coming and easily intercepted her with a slight smile that clearly said 'nice try'. So she still needed some practice maybe. All in good time.

Shaw reached out and pushed her back gently, urging her to lie down. Root glared. She didn't want to lie down. She wanted to punch her fist through a wall for fun and then climb the castle with her bare hands. And then have a lot of sex. The last few days of dying slowly had killed her sex drive, but it was definitely back now. They just had to figure out how to have completely silent sex was all.

Shaw shoved her down more firmly and Root snarled at her but obeyed. Vampires couldn't sleep, she remembered, but there was something else tugging at her when she lay back in her nest of blankets. It was like sleeping while awake, an unusually lucid dream where she could still sense things around herself quite clearly but wasn't exactly awake. Drifting, Shaw called it. What it meant was that she could stay aware of Shaw hovering nearby even as she rested, and that alone made all of this worth it.

* * *

It was two days before she could take the headphones off for good and tolerate Shaw speaking out loud in the same room. Shaw came and went, leaving mostly to get more blood bags for herself and take Bear outside, and returning to let Root feed from her--still only from her wrist until she had more control much to Root's extreme disappointment.

"I don't feel dead," she said to Shaw on the third day. "But I definitely feel different."

"My theory is vampires aren't exactly dead in the real biological sense," Shaw said. "Alive in a different way, maybe. It felt like dying though when I got turned, but I was also actually dying at the time so maybe not a great example."

"I don't fully remember," Root realized. She was disappointed by that.

"There's a chance it comes back to you in time."

"When can I leave here?" The tiny cell was starting to wear on her patience. She'd never enjoyed being cooped up.

"Might still be too bright for you, though if I turn off all the lights and you stay out of the rooms with windows it could be okay."

"Let's try it."

Shaw went out first to make sure everything was as dark as possible, and Root trailed behind her eagerly. Even without much light, everything looked way more vivid and sharp. She touched a wall and the texture of it felt a million times more distinct like she could feel every tiny bump on the stone. She was so immersed in touching and looking at everything that it took her a solid half hour to make it up to the first floor.

It was noisier up here, though she'd learned how to tune out the worst of it in the last few days. She could hear Bear breathing in his sleep from the nearby spare bedroom that was his personal room. She could hear the sound of crickets outside. Of an owl. Of a bat. Of a tree branch creaking in the wind.

"Focus," Shaw reminded her, and she pulled back before she got lost in the array of tiny sounds.

She knew exactly what she wanted to try next. Over the last few days she'd worked on perfecting her new speed as much as possible within the tiny cell--so only her arm movements--and now she could try it out to its fullest. She practically flew up the stairs, but she hadn't quite mastered stopping yet and smashed into a small table on the landing, breaking it to pieces. Oops.

"Maybe wait until you go outside to do that," Shaw said from behind her in an exasperated tone. "I'd rather not have kindling for furniture."

She turned back to Shaw, hunger rising in her again. Shaw had promised that part would get better after a few more days, but so far she was still constantly starving. Shaw must have recognized the look because she rolled her eyes.

"Can you go upstairs without wrecking my house?"

They made it to Shaw's bedroom before Root couldn't wait any longer. She shoved Shaw back into the bed and Shaw sat down heavily on the edge with a surprised grunt. Before she had time to stand up, Root climbed on top of her, straddling her lap and nosing at her neck. She didn't think she'd ever wanted anything quite as badly as she wanted to bite Shaw right then, but she made herself wait.

"Can I?" she asked. Shaw hadn't pushed her away so that was a good sign.

"If you rip my throat out, I'm going to be really pissed. That shit hurts."

"I'll be careful."

"You'd better be."

Shaw tilted her head to one side and Root took that as permission. She raked her eyes over Shaw's neck first, taking in the sight of her offering up her blood so freely. Just the thought of it had been enough to turn her on in the past, and the actuality of it was much more enticing. Her hips thrust forwards almost on their own as she ground herself against Shaw's body.

"One thing at a time," Shaw said, amused.

Root tried to concentrate. She licked at Shaw's neck, tracing a tendon with her tongue. And then finally, finally, she closed her mouth on Shaw's skin and sank her fangs into her.

It had been worth the wait, she decided as Shaw's blood filled her mouth. It was definitely more intense this way, though she also understood what Shaw meant about feeding not being sexy necessarily. Once she withdrew her fangs to suck Shaw's blood, the spike of desire the act had sent through her retreated a little. Which was why once she'd had her fill, she bit down again and this time left her fangs in. Her body felt impossibly tight and painfully stretched to its limit as she sank her teeth into Shaw and rubbed up against her. She needed...she wasn't sure what but she needed it immediately.

Shaw was fortunately in a clearer state of mind (though Root could smell exactly how into this she was as well) because she shoved a hand down the front of Root's shorts and only got a chance to touch her once before Root came. It was incredibly intense this way with all her senses cranked up to eleven. She thought she was going to die (again) for a moment, murdered by the strongest orgasm she'd ever felt.

"You might want to take it slow the first few times," Shaw told her. She withdrew her hand and patted Root on the butt. "Get up."

Root reluctantly stood on shaky legs and drank in the sight of the fresh bite marks on Shaw's neck, and yes, she could completely understand why Shaw always stared now. It was deeply satisfying to see them and profoundly unfair they'd heal so fast on Shaw. She'd just have to make up for that by biting her all the time.

That part turned out to be easy enough since Shaw let her keep feeding on her over the next week. She thought that she might be able to transition to blood bags (which Shaw had told her didn't work as well for brand new vampires. Something about actually needing to feed) or even go drink from a donor, but she wasn't going to protest if it meant she got to bite Shaw all the time.

She _was_ looking forward to when Shaw would be willing to bite her again though. Be patient, Shaw kept telling her, which was the same thing she told her whenever Root wanted to do anything, including leaving the castle.

They tried to take it slow with sex and strike a balance between the fact Root felt like an overly-horny teenager (more so than usual) and the fact she was still getting used to her new range of senses and got over-stimulated easily. It was maybe a week past the first time she'd had sex as a vampire that they'd finally decided to bring toys back into the equation. And that was why the strap-on Shaw was wearing that night was one of the smaller ones they had and Root was on top of her so she could control the pace more. It felt good, but it was definitely not the hard fucking she wanted. Still, getting to see Shaw under her while she rode her was always a delight and she was starting to contemplate that maybe she was ready for something more adventurous when a noise startled her.

They both turned their heads to look at the phone vibrating on the nightstand. It was Shaw's phone which hardly ever rang and that meant there was only one person it could be.

"You're not answering that," Root said firmly.

"It might be important. He knows not to call if it's not."

Shaw reached for the phone, but Root pinned her arm to the bed to stop her. An amused smile darted across Shaw's face and the muscles in the arm tensed as she forcibly pushed Root back. It was an effort for her now, but she was definitely still stronger much to Root's annoyance.

Shaw lunged up at her and rolled them both over so Root was flat on her back instead, Shaw pinning both her wrists and looking pleased.

"That could have been an important call," Shaw said, though she sounded amused rather than annoyed. She rocked her hips forwards, putting some real force behind the movement, and Root felt her mouth fall open. Pleasure rolled through her in drawn-out waves as Shaw fucked her hard and thoroughly. She wrapped her legs around Shaw and clung to her, urging her to go faster, deeper. All the sensations left her teetering on the edge of too much, but her body still demanded more.

Shaw's teeth scraped across her neck, leaving stinging cuts in their wake, and then, before Root could demand it, fangs sank deep into her skin. She'd worried that it would be different now that she was a vampire as well, and it was, but it still felt amazing and the idea of it still hit her just right. The pleasure of all of it fogged up her mind and she was only remotely aware that she was coming. By the time she regained full control over her senses, Shaw had pulled out of her and left her lying warm and heavy on the bed while she checked her phone.

John must have left a message and Shaw made a face while she listened to it. She dropped the phone back down when she was done and rejoined Root in the middle of the bed.

"You up to keep going?"

"What did John want? Was it actually important?"

Shaw dodged the question by rolling back on top of her and guiding one of Root's hands between her own legs. "Here."

Root was happy to comply, but she wasn't about to be distracted. "What was the message, Shaw?" she asked as she pushed into Shaw with two fingers.

"Just some vampire bullshit," Shaw said dismissively. "Nothing important."

It was a little hard to stay focused with the way Shaw's whole body seemed to curl into her as she fucked her, but Root made an effort. "I'm a vampire now, so vampire bullshit is my business, too."

"We're not going," Shaw said firmly.

"Going where?" When there was no response, she slowed the movements of her fingers to a halt. Shaw whined in protest. "Going where, Shaw?"

"Make me come and I'll tell you, okay?"

Shaw had never gone back on her word, so Root started thrusting into her again. Shaw's weight on top of her was warm and solid and the easy push and pull between them as they rocked into each other was nice. She was almost disappointed when she felt Shaw spasm around her fingers as she came. Shaw's fingers bit into her shoulders and she moaned right in Root's ear and Root had to remind herself that she was waiting for an answer from Shaw still.

"Where are we not going?" she asked as Shaw laid limply on top of her. She still wasn't used to the fact that Shaw felt warm to her now and feeling her warmth crushing her into the bed was amazing.

"It's Control. Somehow she knows I made a new vampire and she wants me to present you to her. Some vampire tradition garbage. I don't answer to her though, so we're not going."

Root ran her hand along Shaw's sweaty flank. "And what will she do when you ignore her?"

"Eh, might send someone to try and make us show up. Nothing I can't handle though."

"You mean nothing _we_ can't handle."

Shaw sighed. "Yeah, I guess I should teach you how to fight."

"I already know how to fight." Though not as well as Shaw.

"Not as a vampire you don't." Shaw lifted herself up enough to look Root in the eye. "Tomorrow, though. We have other things to do tonight."

* * *

Fighting against an untrained baby vampire was more challenging than Shaw had anticipated. A fully mature vampire who'd been around long enough to understand how to use their strength and speed fought in certain ways that were predictable. They generally did not use their speed to extreme extents that would cause them to completely lose control and slam into walls the way Root kept doing. Shaw's basement walls were full of large impact dents now and there were a few minor cracks in the floor from where she'd body-slammed Root down to make her stay still.

It was the most fun she'd had in years.

There was something extremely hot about seeing Root with a feral grin on her lips and her hair full of plaster dust wiping a thin trail of blood off her face with the back of her hand.

"Can I get faster from practicing?" she asked as she circled around Shaw to the left.

"Yeah, and stronger. The weights are partly for fun, but not just for fun." She stayed stationary, only turning in place to keep Root in front of her.

"And what's the initial speed and strength of a vampire based on?"

The slight flick of Root's eyes gave her away. Shaw easily stepped aside when she charged and knocked her legs out from under her. Root ended up face down on the floor.

"A combination of things, I think," Shaw said. She offered Root a hand up and ignored her attempts to pull her down to the floor. "The strength of the human when they're turned, but the strength of the vampire who turns them does seem to have an impact as well."

"So you're saying that I get to benefit from your workout routine in multiple ways?" Root stood up and tried to tackle Shaw from up close, but Shaw just shoved her and let her momentum carry her to the ground again.

"I'm saying you got lucky, but you should consider picking up your own workout routine." Shaw looked over at her cherished workout equipment. "But you can't use mine until I'm sure you won't break it."

"How do I compare to Control's vampires?" Root asked from the floor. She rolled over on her back and stretched out. Maybe she was planning on staying down there.

"Hmm, you're probably stronger than a bunch of them, but you need to work on controlling yourself. Raw strength isn't everything." Root was getting more coordinated and precise by the day though, way faster than Shaw had expected. No reason to tell her that--her ego was plenty big without additional praise. "Get up and try again. And stop giving your plans away with your eyes."

By the end of their sparring match, Root had only managed to get the drop on her once, but even that had ended in Shaw slamming her into the floor. Which had ended in them making out on the floor of Shaw's basement which devolved into both of them with a hand down the other's pants rocking into each other and breathing hard into each other's mouths. Root might not have learned as much as she could have that day, but it definitely wasn't time wasted.

It also ultimately wouldn't have mattered if they hadn't gotten distracted, because Control's minions showed up later that night. Shaw was in the shower when they got there, so she was a few seconds too slow to stop Root from attempting to take the intruders out on her own. She barely managed to throw on a shirt and pants before she sped down the hall and out through the third floor window, not bothering to open it first. She exploded out into the night air in a rain of wood and glass shards and tucked herself into a roll as she hit the ground so she came up on her feet.

Root was on the far side of the garden standing over a screaming vampire with a savage grin on her blood-spattered face. The vampire she'd taken out was missing an arm and his leg was bent awkwardly so he was probably down for the count, but she didn't seem to have noticed the second vampire crouched on the garden wall behind her. That one had only hesitated because of Shaw's arrival and now was watching both of them warily.

Shaw moved without thinking, hurtling past Root and launching herself into the air to tackle the second vampire off the wall. They landed on the ground outside the wall, Shaw pinning the other vampire down. She could have ripped his throat out, but instead she slammed his head into the ground until he was extremely unconscious. Lucky for him the damage she'd done to his skull would heal.

She dragged him back inside the wall and over to where Root was still toying with her prisoner. She had a long, silver knife out and was very intent on carving something on the other vampire's remaining arm. Shaw sighed and pulled her off.

"Carving your name in victims is a serial killer thing, not a vampire thing."

"What's wrong with it being both?" Root put her knife away, but she looked disappointed. "I didn't kill him anyway. I thought you might want to use them to send a message to Control."

"Good thinking." Killing the vampire would likely only escalate things, but sending them back damaged like this would make a statement. Besides, the fact they'd only sent two not-particularly-strong vampires suggested that the whole endeavour was more for show than anything else. "I'll tell Hersh he has until dawn to come pick them up."

"Isn't it dangerous to leave them alive here that long?"

Shaw smirked at the terrified look on Root's captive. He probably knew. "Strong silver chains won't hold a vampire forever, but they'll hold one just long enough."

"Good to know."

Shaw left the two vampires securely chained to her front gate and called Hersh to come claim them.

"You're all so civilized about this," Root said with dry amusement. "I would have mailed their heads back to Control."

"We try to keep up some semblance of civility," Shaw agreed. "Otherwise you have a lot of extremely powerful immortals destroying whole towns while they slug out their petty differences. It's part of why they didn't kill you when they captured you before. It's rude to kill a vampire's human." These two vampires had most likely been sent to abduct Root rather than kill either of them.

"What if I want to destroy an entire town?"

It was the first time Shaw considered the possible external consequences of turning Root. She'd known Root didn't have a lot of use for humans, but would she actually go on a murder spree? It was easy to forget about her homicidal streak when she was trying to sneak in illegal cuddles and adding more lava lamps to her collection.

Root must have seen her concern because she laughed. "Don't worry, Shaw, I'll behave myself."

"You'd better. Vampires shouldn't exist. We don't have a place in this world. Better we stay out of it as much as possible. Stay creatures of legend."

"And yet you still made me one."

Shaw chose not to answer that. Turning Root didn't count. She hadn't done that to expand the interests of vampires or her own bloodline or anything dumb. She'd done it...she'd done it for Root.

"Let's go back inside," was all she said out loud.

* * *

Root tried hard not to get impatient with Shaw taking it easy with her. Logically she knew that she had eternity to be a vampire and that Shaw being careful was her way of caring rather than her thinking Root was weak, but she was _bored_. Control's vampires showing up had been the most exciting thing to happen since she'd become a vampire, other than all the sex. And even with the sex Shaw was still holding back some.

It was deeply annoying, especially when she tried to make things more exciting and ended up pinned down. She liked being pinned down just fine, but she preferred it to lead to Shaw fucking her and not to deescalation.

So when Shaw finally took a job dealing with a rogue vampire in the next country over, Root made it very clear that she wasn't being left behind. She was surprised when Shaw didn't argue.

"Figure you'll have to take the plunge eventually."

Root was pleased enough that she chose to withhold her thoughts on 'plunging'.

It wasn't a particularly challenging job--only one vampire and he wasn't very strong. Root got to him first and dangled him off a building by one leg until Shaw showed up and finished him off.

"You've got to stop playing with your prey. That's the sort of dramatic grandstanding that'll bite you in the ass one day."

"You can bite me in the ass any day, sweetie."

"Let's go back to the hotel and I'll think about it."

The vampire might not have put up much of a fight, but he'd made them chase him across the rooftops which had been enough to get both of them in the mood for some action. Since they hadn't gotten to fight, there was only one way to spend their excess energy.

Root tried to shove Shaw up against the wall of their room as soon as the door shut behind them, but Shaw spun her around and slammed her into the other wall. The breath Root didn't need was forced out of her lungs and the dark look in Shaw's eyes made her tingle with anticipation. She had a feeling Shaw wasn't going to go slow tonight.

It was a fight, but a silently agreed upon one. Root lunged at her and Shaw knocked her to the floor. They both struggled, flipping each other over and trying to end up on top. The bed got shoved to the side with a horrible creak and the little table fell to the floor, light smashing down into pieces. They were definitely not going to be welcomed back here anytime soon.

Shaw won, still much physically stronger than Root from years of working out regularly, and she pinned Root to the floor by both wrists. Her lips drew back in a snarl and her head flashed forwards faster than Root could track as she bit savagely into the side of Root's neck hard enough that she cried out (though definitely not in pain). Root wrapped a leg around Shaw and tried to free her wrists. She wanted to feel Shaw's skin against hers and that meant clothing needed to be removed immediately and preferably with as much force as possible.

Shaw must have had the same idea, because she sat back up--lips smeared red with Root's blood--and her fingers tore at the front of Root's shirt. With her hands freed, Root returned the favor and ripped the seam open on the side of Shaw's shirt. Pieces of clothes were shredded everywhere until both of them were mostly naked. The speed it all happened at was almost too fast for Root to keep up with, but her fangs were in Shaw's neck and Shaw's fingers were in her and they rocked against each other on the shitty hotel carpet. She thought someone banged on the wall at one point, but even with her heightened hearing she was too focused on Shaw to really register it.

Shaw picked her up before she came and hoisted her onto the long dresser by her hips. The cheap tv joined the lamp on the floor as Root wrapped both legs around Shaw to pull her in closer. Shaw used her hips to drive her fingers into Root harder and the whole dresser shook and banged against the wall. This was way rougher than she'd been so far, probably too rough for a human to take, and fuck if it wasn't exactly what Root had been aching for for weeks now.

Shaw didn't draw it out and used every bit of force she could to fuck Root into the best orgasm she'd had since she was turned. While Shaw was looking smug and pleased with herself, Root pounced on her and shoved her down across the bed to repay the favor so vigorously that the skinny little bed legs gave out and the whole bed frame collapsed to the floor. It was Root's turn to look satisfied while Shaw recovered on the ruined bed.

"Worth waiting for?" Shaw asked without moving.

"I still say we could have done this days ago, but obviously it was amazing."

"Maybe we should switch hotels."

"Or just teleport back home and continue this. Your furniture is much sturdier."

"Not until I get some rest."

Shaw hadn't been willing to let Root try to teleport them yet and for once Root agreed with her that it was a bad idea. Her one attempt at teleporting across the yard had made her feel so horrible that she wasn't sure she ever wanted to try it again.

"A different room then. Did you bring spare clothes?"

"You were in charge of packing."

"Shaw, I clearly remember that you volunteered to pack."

Shaw sighed. "Guess we'll have to find something to do naked for the rest of the night and then teleport back into my castle tomorrow."

"Somehow," Root said climbing back on top of her, "I don't think that will be a problem."

* * *

Root tossed aside the broken pair of handcuffs.

"Told you so," Shaw said. This was why she'd given her the cheapest pair they had. She hadn't even touched Root yet and Root had already managed to snap the chain.

"I liked it when you tied me up," Root said mournfully. She was sitting on the bed, wearing a particularly skimpy red negligee that looked a lot like what she'd been wearing the first time they'd met. "Isn't there any material that's strong enough to hold a vampire?"

"Silver alone wouldn't hold you, but it would hurt like fuck until you got it off your skin. Chains like what I tied those vampires up with would work, but they'd cause way too much damage." Shaw climbed onto the foot of the bed and grabbed Root's ankles. She pulled Root forwards so she was on her back with the red gauzy nightgown bunched up around her waist. "Lucky for you I'm still stronger than you. I can just hold you down."

Root spread her legs wide and Shaw settled between them. She licked a line along the inside of Root's thigh and then bit down harshly, fangs tearing into flesh. Root's breath came out in a hiss, but her hands threaded into Shaw's hair, encouraging her. The bite mark Shaw left on her leg was messier than usual, but it would heal fast and clean now so the extra roughness was just a harmless treat for them both.

"How about rope?" Root asked a few seconds later.

Shaw looked up at her from where she was extremely busy with her mouth and raised an eyebrow but didn't answer. Here she was enjoying the taste of Root on her tongue and the obscenely wet noises that came with eating Root out and just generally having a damn good time, and Root wanted to discuss the technicalities of vampire bondage.

"I was just thinking it might be possible to do something like--" Root's voice broke off into a moan as Shaw slid her tongue into her.

Root tried again a second later. "If I wasn't actually pulling against the restraints directly--"

Shaw sat up, exasperated. "This not doing it for you?"

Root actually looked chagrined. "Sorry, sweetie, I was just excited about the idea I had."

"Let's hear it then." She ran her thumb over the ragged bite mark on Root's leg, appreciating it before it faded. She wasn't even mad about the interruption since she knew that once Root had an idea in her head she'd be fixated on it until it got dealt with.

"It might be easier to just try it," Root said, her eyes locked on Shaw's hand. "If you're up for it, of course."

Root's idea was simple enough: she held her arms in front of herself to let Shaw lash them together with thick, soft rope--each hand by the opposite elbow so they were crossed in front of her. The rope was wound around her arms many times so her forearms were completely covered with it. Root tugged gently, pushing against the rope to test it.

"You could break out if you really tried, but it should hold depending on what you had in mind. You'll still have the same problem if I tie your arms to something else though."

"That won't be necessary." Root flopped over on the bed and pushed herself up onto her knees and elbows so her ass--covered by the red nightgown she hadn't bothered to take off--stuck up in the air invitingly. Shaw was suddenly much more interested in the whole exercise. Clearly this was a very important scientific experiment that they needed to thoroughly investigate.

"Arms feel okay?" she asked on her way back from the toy drawer. Vampires didn't have circulation problems the way a human could, but if the ropes were too tight they'd still feel uncomfortable.

"So far, so good." Root rested the side of her head on her bound arms so she could look back at Shaw over her shoulder. "I know you can move faster than that."

"You're the one who delayed things before," Shaw pointed out. She held up two dildos. "Preference?"

"The one on the left." It was one of their larger pieces which meant Root really wanted to push things this time. The thought of that made Shaw's mouth water with anticipation. She got into the strap-on harness in record time and climbed back on the bed behind Root.

She pushed the red negligee up to bare Root's ass. This was going to be fun, but first….

Her palm struck Root's buttcheek sharply and without warning, pulling a startled yelp out of Root. She paused to see if Root had any feedback, but Root just wiggled her hips to encourage her so Shaw smacked her a few more times, the red marks fading almost as soon as they appeared. A shame. She might have tried spanking her with something other than her hand, but that could wait for another time. Right now she wanted to pound Root into the mattress.

She guided the tip of the dildo into Root and then thrust forwards with her hips, filling Root with a single, smooth motion. Root moaned obscenely and her hips pushed back into Shaw, taking her in deeper.

"God that feels amazing," Root murmured.

Shaw rocked her hips a little, giving her a second to get used to it. "Not too much?"

"Mmm, not at all. I want you to absolutely wreck me." She looked back at Shaw. "Don't you dare go easy on me this time, Sameen," she ordered.

"Wouldn't dream of it."

Shaw got a good grip on Root's hips before she slowly pulled out almost all the way. She slammed back into her with more force than she would have risked with a human and was rewarded by a choked cry of approval from Root. Time to let loose then.

It had been a really damn long time before she'd met Root that she'd last fucked another vampire, and she'd forgotten how satisfying it was to really go all out. The speed and force of her thrusts shook the whole bed and almost made Root's knees give out. But Root rallied quickly and pushed back into her, the two of them settling into a rhythm, the only sounds their heavy breaths and the slap of skin on skin.

"How's that feel?" Shaw asked as she slowed down for just a second.

"More!" It wasn't a request.

Shaw grinned savagely at the demand and grabbed two fistfulls of Root's red nightgown. She tore it open, baring Root's pale back. Gauzy shreds of red cloth were scattered across the bed. Satisfied, Shaw switched her full attention back to pumping her hips up against Root at a bruising pace.

"I'm so close." Root's voice was almost a sob of desperation. "Please, Shaw."

Shaw planted a hand on the bed by Root's side so she could lean forward over her. She circled her other hand around Root, ghosted her fingers over her trembling stomach, and down. Root was so wet and swollen under her fingers that Shaw's breath caught. Holy shit but she felt good. It was almost a pity to end this so soon. Shaw touched Root's clit and Root's whole body jolted under her. Root's hips pressed back into her and she cried out as she came, her fingers ripping holes in the sheets under her bound arms.

Shaw rocked her hips slowly until Root was done and then pulled out and let her collapse on the bed. She discarded the strap-on and then rolled Root over onto her back. Root's entire face was lit up by a huge, smug smile as she stared somewhat vacantly at the ceiling. Shaw sat next to her and tried to be patient while she recovered. She really needed to get off and it would have been easy to take care of herself, maybe even before Root noticed, but what she actually wanted was Root's mouth on her.

Root raised her arms in a silent request and Shaw carefully undid the knots she'd tied and unwound the rope from Root's arms. There was some faint, red rope-burn on Root's forearms, but it was already healing.

"Lie down," Root said, voice rough like her throat was raw. She struggled to sit up and then slid off the bed.

Shaw lay back as Root fetched something from the other side of the room. Root had never disappointed her, so whatever she had in mind would undoubtedly be good. When Root returned, she crawled on top of Shaw, straddling her and pressing her wetness against Shaw's leg. Shaw's eyes snapped to focus on the small knife she held in one hand.

Okay, she could definitely go along with this. She nodded when Root held up the knife and raised her eyebrow in question.

The blade of the knife had a decent amount of silver content, enough that when Root drew it in a sharp, fast slash along her left collar bone it burned like fuck. The pain screamed through her mind, burning and throbbing before it levelled off into a wonderfully painful ache. Root flicked her wrist and added another line a few inches from the first. Her free hand dipped between Shaw's legs, fingering her roughly.

Shaw's mind was so wrapped in the wonderful foggy haze of pain and pleasure that she only had a second to realize what Root was about to do next. Root leaned down and ran her tongue over one of the painful, bloody cuts in a long, wet stroke. She pressed her lips to Shaw's raw skin and dragged her fangs across the open cut. Shaw's fingers twisted into Root's hair, though she was unsure if she wanted to pull her away or urge her on.

When Root sat back up, there was blood on her lips and teeth. She ran her tongue over her lips once, slowly. She looked wild and dangerous and Shaw didn't think she'd ever been attracted to someone even half as much as she was attracted to Root in that moment.

Root's fingers went back to work and she sank two fingers into Shaw and curled them insistently. Shaw's eyes stayed open and locked on Root's as she came, clenching hard on Root's fingers. The two bloody cuts on her chest were like pulsing lines of heat that throbbed in time to the waves of pleasure rolling through her.

Root sat on the bed between her legs while she recovered, licking her sticky fingers off with a tongue still stained red. The sight of it was almost enough to make Shaw come again.

"Well, I think that went very well," Root said. She sounded like she was gloating.

"I think we can do better," Shaw said just to be contrary. She sat up and pulled Root over into her lap so she could kiss her and taste her own blood in Root's mouth.

"Wanna do better right now?" Root asked when the kiss broke off.

Shaw's only answer was to kiss her again and to roll them both over onto the ripped up sheets.

She could definitely get used to this.

* * *

It was odd to Shaw how little had changed and yet how much was different now that Root was a vampire. Root was still Root after all and things between them hadn't changed in any meaningful way. They still both lived in Shaw's castle and did occasional mercenary work together and destroyed an unfortunate amount of clothing and furniture during their frequent sex marathons. Root still had her nerdy room full of lava lamps in the tower (though she couldn't go up there during the day anymore) and Shaw still had her basement gym. Life (un-life?) continued much as it had before.

But the differences were impossible to miss. Shaw had to use donors much more often now, like back before she'd had Root staying there. Root did as well, though she often angled to have one of them feed on the other instead of both of them using donors, something which Shaw was completely okay with indulging--she'd been surprised by how much she missed feeding primarily on Root.

Watching Root slowly adjust to her new abilities was entertaining though. It was almost like she was a gangly colt who hadn't grown used to her long legs yet, except in this case the gangly colt was an immortal vampire and the long legs were the ability to punch her fist straight through someone's body and rip out their spine. So maybe not a perfect analogy. Root had always been a fast study though and the power that Shaw worried about her picking up the most was possibly the least dangerous.

Shaw came home from grabbing supplies at the local convenience store one night to find Bear standing outside the kitchen barking his head off and what appeared to be an enormous feral raccoon on top of the cabinets looking immensely pleased with itself in a distinctly human way.

Why couldn't Root have just turned into a wolf or a cat like a normal vampire? Or, yes, even a goddamned bat would have been better. Shaw lived in dread of the day when Root figured out how to assume other animal forms. She fully expected to find an iguana on the lawn one day. Or a cassowary. Whatever it was she was sure it would be obnoxious and embarrassing for her to be seen in public with. It was almost a relief to find an oversized ferret destroying her second favorite couch one morning, but she still lived in dread of the next time Root got near a large body of water.

There were some unexpected benefits to Root gleefully embracing her vampire identity in embarrassing ways though. She loved to play the part--stalking the battlements in a cape, standing silhouetted in a window at night--and the villagers ate that shit up. More importantly, the tourists fucking loved it and local businesses were booming. At this rate Shaw thought she should renegotiate the cut she got of their profits. The entire act made Shaw cringe, but it was also helping to pay for all the replacement furniture she kept having to buy.

And she had to buy new furniture way too often due to how frequently they seemed to destroy furniture while exploring the limits of their new sex life. Once Root had fully adjusted to her new senses there was no more need for Shaw to be careful. She didn't have to worry about accidentally hurting Root when things got rough--which was most of the time even if they both did enjoy things a bit softer sometimes.

"Would you have gotten bored of fucking a human eventually?" Root asked one night. "It had to be frustrating having to hold back all the time."

They were in Shaw's reading room that night, Shaw sprawled out across the couch and Root lying on her stomach in front of the fire, working on something on a laptop (she had some large project she'd been busy with lately that, when asked, she'd said was 'the future of the human race'. Which could mean anything from unleashing skynet to programming the roomba to play obnoxious music while it cleaned. Or both). Her hair looked extra shiny in the flickering light and Shaw kind of wanted to touch it, but that would have led to other things and she wasn't quite ready to take things in that direction yet. She refused to give up hope yet that she'd get to finish this chapter of her book.

"Human life spans are so short that it'd be hard to find time to get bored of one," she said.

The pout on Root's face suggested that this wasn't the ego stroking she'd been looking for.

"Superhuman strength and speed only make up for so much," Shaw said placatingly. "There's a lot of vampires out there with shit for creativity. Rather have to hold back a bit with someone whose tastes were compatible with mine than have boring sex for eternity."

Root looked mollified by that, a wicked grin settling on her lips. "So you're saying we're compatible?"

Shaw prodded her in the side with one bare foot. "In bed anyway. Definitely not in decorating."

Root's hand circled around her ankle and tugged playfully.

"I figure I got the best of both worlds though," Shaw added.

Root's grin turned sappy at that and her eyes got all soft the way they did when she incorrectly thought that Shaw was being cute. "Remember how we first met?"

"You drugged yourself on my front steps because you thought it was the best way to get into my pants."

"It worked though." Root's fingers stroked along the inside of her ankle.

"Only because you were hot and I was bored."

"You still think I'm hot."

Shaw put her book down because it was a lost cause at this point. "What's your point?"

"Are you still bored?"

Shaw rolled her eyes and then smoothly sprang off the couch to pounce on Root and pin her on the thick carpet in front of the fire. "What do you think?"

Root grinned up at her, fangs fully on display. "No regrets then?"

Shaw ignored the question in favor of kissing her. Root couldn't ask nosy questions with Shaw's tongue in her mouth.

"What about you?" she asked when the kiss broke off. "Any regrets?"

"Well, I'd say that being a vampire and living here with you doesn't suck, but that wouldn't be strictly accurate, now would it?" She turned her head to the side to bare her unmarked (for now) neck just in case Shaw had missed the pun.

"Seriously?"

"It would have been tragic if my grand plan to seduce you had been...in vein."

"No."

"It was a high stakes mission."

Shaw had to kiss her again to stop the horrible puns. She finally got to tangle a hand in Root's shiny, soft hair like she'd been wanting to all evening and Root hooked a leg around her to pull her closer. If Root hadn't had her vampiric strength she might not have been able to push Shaw back just long enough to look up at her with a shit-eating grin that made Shaw brace for the worst and ask:

"Since you technically brought me back from the dead, does that make you...a neck romancer?"

"Maybe, but you're just a pain in the neck," Shaw said, hating herself a little for getting drawn into this. It was either join in or drop Root off the roof and only one of those led to her getting laid anytime soon.

"Good thing you're into that." Root tugged Shaw back down by her collar. "And good thing I am, too."

Shaw didn't need any additional encouragement to lean down and sink her fangs deep into Root's neck. Root moaned and the sound of it vibrated through Shaw. Between the crackling fire and the taste of Root's blood and the feeling of Root's body under her own, it was damn near perfect. The only flaw was that Root's mouth wasn't occupied with anything else so there was nothing stopping her from getting in one last comment.

"You know, I've always been a sucker for you, sweetie."

Shaw couldn't help but smile just a tiny bit. Yeah, that one she knew.


End file.
